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Monday, November 18, 2013

Today I'm really excited to be part of the blog tour for These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. Be sure to read past the review to check out all the other tour stops, plus enter the giveaway!

It's a night like
any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury
spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets into the nearest planet.
Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone.

Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from
nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more
trouble than they’re worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and
Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted
terrain to seek help.

Then, against all odds, Lilac and Tarver find a strange blessing in the tragedy
that has thrown them into each other’s arms. Without the hope of a future
together in their own world, they begin to wonder—would they be better off
staying here forever?

Everything changes when they uncover the truth behind the chilling whispers
that haunt their every step. Lilac and Tarver may find a way off this planet.
But they won’t be the same people who landed on it.

My initial thoughts
when I first discovered These Broken Stars: OMG LOOK AT THE GORGEOUS COVER.
*pets computer screen* Then when I finally got over the stunning cover and read
the synopsis: OMG TITANIC IN SPACE. My inner 13-year-old had a squee-filled
meltdown.

While I was drawn
in by the ‘Titanic in space’ concept, there was so much more that kept me
fascinated with These Broken Stars from beginning to end. I’ve read
quite a bit of science fiction this year, and very few - if any - come close to
having such an original premise paired with incredible characters, world building, and
writing.

I adored Lilac and
Tarver, separately and together. Tarver especially piqued my interest from the
first page, and I was curious to learn more about him. Lilac wasn’t what she
seemed at all. It was easy to assume she was a spoiled little princess, and in
some ways she was, but she was also smart and resourceful. I really felt for
her because she had what seemed like the perfect life on the outside, but really
she was trapped. Because of who her dad was and the fact that she was in the
public eye, there was a lot expected of her, and much of it was unfair. She
never knew if people liked her because of who she was or because of her name - not
that it really mattered anyway since her actual world was pretty small and
consisted of bodyguards and family members. So as the story progressed, she was
always surprising me with how tough she was; I half expected her to play the
damsel in distress and make Tarver save her, but they did equal amounts of
saving each other. She got stronger and stronger as the story went on, and I
admired and respected her a lot for how strong, resilient, and capable she was.

I loved Tarver for
his bravery and strength, and his patience with Lilac, even during the moments
she didn’t necessarily deserve it. Watching them go from disdain to curiosity
to a tentative alliance to so much more was frustrating, funny, heartwarming,
and beautiful. They were a great match - both hardheaded, determined, and
incredibly strong. And because it happened slowly, organically, it felt
completely genuine and believable.

I loved the dual
POVs and the fact that they were in first person present tense. I thought it might get confusing, but it didn’t. It gave great insight into Lilac and Tarver's thoughts,
feelings, and motives. They had such distinctive voices that it was never a
problem, and I never got confused. The dual POV didn’t fall into the trap of
basically repeating things from each perspective, which I appreciated. That
gets boring quickly and is unnecessary, but I felt like each time we switched
perspectives, we got something fresh - literally a new point of view.

I feel like there’s
not much I can say about the actual plot without getting into spoiler
territory. I can say this though: the story as a whole wasn’t what I was expecting. It’s largely a tale of survival on a strange, uninhibited planet, but
there’s much more. And the ‘more’ is mysterious and creepy, and as it all unfolded I
was totally enthralled. There are so many twists and turns - one in particular
I want to talk about because it broke my feels into a million pieces and I had
to send a semi-hysterical text to one of my best friends just to get through it
- but I know I can’t because it's a massive spoiler. I’ll just say that it was unexpected and incredible and
pretty much genius on the authors’ part.

These Broken
Stars is one of the best
science fiction books I’ve ever read. It was original and fascinating and
creepy and heartbreaking and romantic and intense and beautiful. It broke my heart
and put it back together again, and I know Lilac and Tarver will stay with me
for a very long time.

Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner are
longtime friends and sometime flatmates who have traveled the world (but not
yet the galaxy), covering every continent between them. They are sure outer
space is only a matter of time. Meagan, who is also the author of the Skylark
trilogy, currently lives in Asheville, NC, while Amie lives in Melbourne,
Australia. Although they currently live apart, they are united by their love of
space opera, road trips, and second breakfasts.

If you pre-order
the book from Malaprop's Bookstore, you can also get a collectible TBS
poster autographed by the authors!

Have you read These Broken Stars?
What did you think? If you haven't, does it sound like something you'd
be interested in? Are you as drawn in as I was by the concept of Titanic in space? Are you a sci-fi fan?

9 comments:

Titanic IN space? How cool is that?!? I have an ARC of this book but still haven't gotten around to reading it, but it sounds really, really good. I got into sci-fi YA with Beth Revis's series, so I still feel like a newbie, but I've heard so many amazing things about this one that I can't let my newness hold me back!

I didn't read your whole review so I wouldn't be spoiled, but I'm so glad you loved it! Hopefully I can get to it soon. :)

I didn't read the entire review because I'm STILL torn about mine and trying to just SAY how this book made me feel. And failing. Ugh. I don't think I'll ever have the words. But you did such an amazing job of explaining why it's such a fantastic book! It's definitely one of THE BEST science-fiction books I've EVER read, as well.

I love the Titanic in space note! I can totally see that. Is it me, or are sci fi books better with dual pov. It could be just me. Anyway, can't wait to read this. Saw it at the local bookstore and fangirled.

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